Iran warned airlines it plans rocket launches across its south and part of the Gulf of Oman on Thursday ahead of broader joint exercises with Russia and China in the Strait of Hormuz.
The notice-to-airmen (Notam) was issued amid heightened tension with the US, which has stationed warships near Iran despite negotiations aimed at reaching a nuclear deal.
The system provides pilots, flight crews and other airspace users with critical safety notices.
The alert was put in place from 07:30 to 17:30 UAE GST. Airlines have been avoiding the area for some time, and it is not clear if the drills will affect Middle East carriers.
Iran has held exercises in the Strait of Hormuz this week and on Wednesday announced it would hold naval drills with Russia aimed to “enhance security and sustainable maritime interactions in the Sea of Oman and the northern Indian Ocean”, Iran’s Fars news agency reported, quoting an Iranian navy commander. The drills will be hosted in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, the commander said.
The country's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have boasted of the new weapons used in the exercises, particularly for defence.
“Our intelligence surveillance of the Strait of Hormuz is complete 24 hours a day, at surface, subsurface and air levels,” Brig Gen Alireza Tangsiri, IRGC navy commander, was quoted by Mehr News Agency as saying.
The islands of the Arabian Gulf “are impregnable fortresses, and if ordered, the IRGC navy will control or close the strait in the shortest possible time”, he added.
On Tuesday, Iran said it was closing parts of the strait for a few hours due to “security precautions” as the IRGC conducted its military drills in the strategically important waterway.
Iran’s state news agency Irna quoted a Russian presidential official as saying that Chinese warships were also headed to the region to take part in the three countries’ annual Maritime Security Belt exercises in the Strait of Hormuz. It is not known if China will be involved in Thursday’s exercises.
While US President Donald Trump has seemingly kept the door open for diplomacy with Iran, there are signs that American strikes are the likeliest outcome.
The US has assigned two aircraft carrier strike groups to provide firepower and air capabilities for a sustained military campaign against Iran, and publicly available flight tracking information showed a steady stream of American warplanes heading to the region this week.
Top national security officials have reportedly told Mr Trump that the military is ready for potential strikes as soon as Saturday, but that he has not yet made a decision about whether to strike, CBS News reported, citing sources.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Mr Trump's preference was for a diplomatic solution to defuse the crisis that has left the region on the brink of another conflict but noted that there were “many reasons and arguments that one could make for a strike against Iran”.
